Bungalow house plans are quickly returning as a desired home style. Bungalow house plans originally came from western areas of the United States but quickly drew interest from southern and northern area families. The original bungalow houses were quite small and only a single storey in height. Bungalows often had wide verandas across the front or wrapping around the house providing additional family gathering areas. Today bungalows are still considered to be single stories but may include partial second floors or loft areas.The popularity of bungalow floor plans is often the result of the desired convenience of having all the main living areas on one floor. In some cases it may be a requirement of necessity as the absence of stairs makes the floor plans well suited to those who are aging, have limited mobility or are confined to a wheelchair.Bungalow floor plans come in a wide range of sizes from small, compact plans suitable for inner city lots to large, sprawling plans that take advantage of country locations. Therefore bungalows can be considered suitable floor plans for any type of homeowner – young or old, single or married, large families or small.The smaller bungalow plans will be designed with strict, efficient use of all space as was typical in the original traditional bungalow designs. Simplicity of design is essential in creating a functional small bungalow plan. These plans can provide comfortable living spaces with all the current household conveniences that families are looking for while allowing for an ease of maintenance and smaller lot considerations. Smaller bungalow plans are suitable for individual homeowners or small families. They are often considered as ‘starter’ homes for families but are often found to be so efficiently designed accommodating grown families is possible.Larger bungalow floor plans have become very popular in recent years. These floor plans provide families with designs that include more elaborate spaces in which to entertain, relax or engage in family activities. Often these larger plans may include separate ‘wings’ to allow for privacy between bedroom areas and active living spaces. Active living spaces may now include mini gyms, game rooms, home theaters and hobby spaces. In areas where construction practices include full basements bungalows with fully developed basement areas are extremely common. This helps to offset the more expensive aspect of bungalow construction. Since bungalows require more foundation and roof area on a per unit basis (per sq.ft, per sq.M) than the same living space in a two storey, bungalows are more expensive to construct. By retaining the convenience of all the daily living spaces on one floor and adding the amenities and/or extra bedrooms in the basement level the footprint can be kept smaller and maintain cost.Bungalows can be designed in any style of exterior architectural design. Traditional exterior styles will customarily be Craftsman, Prairie, Shingle or Colonial designs. Typically clad in natural materials and finished in earthy color schemes these styles all offer wonderful attributes for a comfortable family home and blend suitably in most surroundings.Bungalows are also well defined by Modern, Post Modern and International styles of architecture. These styles will consist of strong yet simple forms enhanced with edgy detailing. Finishing materials will be clean and smooth with possible textured or boldly colored accents. These styles offer the discriminating homeowner opportunity to make a contemporary lifestyle statement.

We know them as craftsman bungalows, California, Chicago, or Michigan bungalows, Arts and Crafts bungalows, or just plain bungalows. But what differentiates a bungalow from a Craftsmans home? About 1911, the Craftsman Bungalow Co, Inc in Seattle, Washington, along with Gustav Stickley, published a book of house plans called “Craftsman Bungalows” whose floor plans were based on the Art and Crafts movement of the time. The American Arts and Crafts Movement, an American architectural, design, and decorative arts style, was popular from the late 19th century through the early part of the 20th century. It remained strong until the 1930s. Craftsman homes features included:

Low-pitched roof lines, gabled or hipped roof
Deeply overhanging eaves,
Exposed rafters or decorative brackets under eaves
Front porch beneath extension of main roof
Tapered, square columns supporting roof
4-over-1 or 6-over-1 double-hung windows
Frank Lloyd Wright design motifs
Hand-crafted stone or woodwork
Mixed materials throughout structure
A huge front porch equipped with thick, square pedestal-like tapered
columns supporting the roof of the porch

While some purists insist that only homes built using these Stickley plans can truly be called “Craftsman,” many homes were designed in a style similar to Stickley’s, hence the bungalow. Bungalows originated in India and were normally small one-story homes with wide verandas (or porches). They were later used for homes for British officials of the British Raj, and whose design was later brought to the U.S. where they initially gained high status. In the later part of 19th century they were used as large cottages. A bungalow today is usually a detached residential home which is either single story, or has a second story built into a sloping roof. Here are main characteristics:

It usually has dormer windows if it has one and a half stories
House are rather small, however, you may find larger examples that were built in earlier years.
Low-pitched roofs with very deep porches
Heavy stone porch column supports that taper as they ascend
Wide projecting eaves and exposed eave brackets.
Exterior materials include natural siding, brick, and/or stucco.
Street-facing gables with composition or shingled roofs
Dark wood paneling
A large fireplace
An arched opening that separated the living room and dining room
Built-in cabinetry in the dining room and kitchen

As you can see Craftsman homes and bungalows share very similar, if not all, of the same characteristics. No matter how you refer to them, bungalows are one of our favorite home designs. We love the wide expansive porches that make them look cozy and comfortable.Bungalows were simple and inexpensive to build. Prior to World War I, a bungalow cost under $900. After the war, prices rose to approximately $3,500. Because of their affordability the middle class were able to more rapidly move from apartments to homes in greater numbers. Bungalow designs were spread by the practice of building from mail-order plans available from illustrated catalogs, sometimes with alterations based on local practice or conditions.Bungalows are found in older neighborhoods in many American cities. Many cities created what are called “Bungalow Belts” of the homes built in the 1920s because they clustered around streetcar lines. Today, you will find neighborhoods of bungalows in almost any city. Bungalows are prized possessions because of their unique and simple designs, built-ins, and their wonderful porches, bungalows are a favorite of many.

Imagine an exclusive neighborhood with tree lined streets, manicured lawns, spacious backyards and the privacy of having four walls to yourself. All of these come with buying your very own Singapore Bungalow.Everybody knows that land is expensive in the land-limited city state. Most other residents, visitors, expats have to live in flats, apartments and condos. Living in a bungalow in Singapore exudes a certain luxury considering that there are roughly only around 1,000 good class bungalows located all around Singapore.Aside from exclusivity, buying Singapore bungalows are very good long term investments. Bungalow sales have fared well even during hard financial times compared to other housing projects and property values. Over the years, very good financial gains have been reported by bungalow owners who have decided to sell their properties.Bungalow owners are also enjoying the plot of land that comes with their properties. Good class bungalows should have a minimum plot of 1,400 sqm. This gives owners and their families a lot of room to play and run around with. Another restriction for bungalow owners is that there has to be an adequate amount of grass and greenery around the property. This stipulation is to adhere to environmental laws that aim to preserve the ambiance of healthy living amidst Singapore’s urban jungle.In addition to this, bungalows are either single storey homes or two storey houses. The height restriction is again to preserve the low-rise and residential feel of bungalow neighborhoods.One of the advantages of buying and owning a bungalow is that it gives the owners a lot of room for future extensions. Bungalows can be easily remodeled and renovated because of the large space available to owners. Extensions can either be a new wing or a new floor or even a swimming pool. Because of the lot size allotted to bungalows, a garden is also a very good idea. Improved and maintained bungalows can easily fetch higher resale values, another motivation for bungalow owners to care for their properties.Singapore law states that only citizens can own landed property, including bungalows in the city-state. But there are a lot of bungalow owners who lease and rent out their properties to foreigners, companies, expats, corporations and even fellow citizens. This is another advantage of buying and owning bungalows because it is one of the more sought after properties for renting, making it a potential money making venture for its owner. Indeed, the current rental on bungalows around the city-state averages in the 5 figure category.Very few of these protected areas exist in Singapore today. Only about 39 designated areas for Good Class Bungalows or GCBs have been designated by the government as protected areas for these types of housing developments. These Areas are Nassim Road, Belmont Park, Cluny Hill and Raffles Park. There are around 2,500 GCBs around the Singapore and of the millions of Singaporeans only about 1,000 citizens own bungalows in these designated areas. The Singaporean Government has no plans in the future to add to these exclusive areas, further raising the value on the current bungalows around the city-state.For people who do not live or have not been to Singapore, they might ask what the fuss is all about Singapore bungalows. In a country where land is a commodity, and owning a bungalow does not only scream wealth, it also says luxury. Singapore bungalows are far and few in between so if you happen to own one, consider yourself one of the lucky few who have made it in life.